1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to air cleaning devices. In particular, this invention relates to air cleaning devices that provide air purification in combination with odor elimination.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
The increase of outdoor air pollution over many years has created a greater awareness for the type of damage that outdoor air pollution can cause to one's health. What is not commonly known, however, is that indoor air pollution also exists and can have a significant affect on one's health. There have been recent Environmental Protection Agency studies that indicate that indoor air pollution levels have the potential to be 2-5 times higher than outdoor air pollution levels. It is estimated by some that, on rare occasions, indoor air pollution levels can be 100 times higher than outdoor air pollution levels. This is an increasingly important matter that must be addressed, as some people spend 90% of their time indoors, especially infants and the elderly. Some of these indoor pollutants may also be contributing factors to frequent and unexplained headaches or sleepless nights that afflict numerous persons within the general population.
There have been numerous prior art apparatuses designed and manufactured for purifying air. With more homes and offices becoming better insulated, an objective of air purifiers is to clear the indoor air of common pollutants, including dust, smoke, pollen, bacteria, soot, mold spores, animal dander and other microscopic irritants, and thereby create a clean, healthy, fresh, and pleasant environment. Some of these apparatuses generate ions by using complicated wire grid arrays or with high voltage electrode arrays. Some use fans for moving air and similar complicated apparatuses. Some of these prior art devices are mounted in large housings that contain fans and other complicated moving parts and filters. Often, they become clogged with pollutants, requiring disassembly of fan assemblies, replacement and/or repair of high-voltage generating sources, extensive clearing of arrays of wires and electrodes that help create air movement, and replacement of filters that clog the apparatuses unless cleaned. These devices are certainly more complicated and perhaps more expensive than what some users may anticipate or desire.
Another aspect of air cleaning that is of interest to consumers is that of adding a component that eliminates odors. However, air cleaning devices are typically only odor modifiers because they employ volatile fragrance agents for masking odors rather than employing odor elimination (OE) compounds for removing odors. What is needed is an effective air purification device that includes an odor elimination mechanism.
Furthermore, air cleaning devices were initially used in bathrooms and kitchens and, consequently, have tended to be more functional than attractive. Air cleaning devices are now used in bedrooms and living rooms, and consumers who wish to use air fresheners in these areas of the home may be reluctant to place an unattractive, functional container in these areas. Furthermore, what is needed is a way of providing a combination of air purification and odor elimination in a single air cleaning device, such as a portable tabletop device.
Odor elimination compounds, such as provided by Givaudan Fragrances Corp. (Mount Olive, N.J.) and Quest International (Netherlands), may include a fragrance element that serves to impart a pleasant odor to the room as well as to indicate to the consumer that the odor elimination compound is working. Additionally, it is desirable for a consumer to have a choice of fragrances within a single air cleaning device and, therefore, eliminate the inconvenience of having to manually remove and replace the fragrance supply each time a different fragrance is desired. Alternatively, an odor elimination compound may be a volatile that reacts with the odor causing molecule. What is needed is a way of providing multiple odor elimination compounds with fragrance element in a single air cleaning device.
Additionally, because the intensity of odors in a home may vary throughout the day, for example, at mealtime cooking odors are stronger than at non-mealtimes, it is beneficial to be able to vary the odor elimination level provided by an air cleaning device. What is needed is a way of providing the ability to adjust the odor elimination level in an air cleaning device.
For years ozone has been used to treat and sanitize water supplies, sanitize pools and spas and remove odors in hotels and fire-damaged buildings. More recently ozone generators have been sold as a way to “clean” the air in a home. Ozone is a molecule formed of three atoms of oxygen. As an unstable molecule, ozone readily offers one of the oxygen atoms to other substances it encounters. When ozone encounters another substance, it shares an oxygen atom, chemically altering that substance. The chemical alteration of micro-organisms, mold, mildew, fungi and bacteria generally results in the death of those substances and the elimination of its odor. Manufacturers of ozone generators and public health agencies are engaged in debate over the use of ozone in the home. Public health agencies claim that ozone is potentially dangerous to human health and recommend that the generators not be used, as ozone may be a respiratory irritant. The same chemical properties that allow ozone to react with organic material in the air also allow it to react with similar organic material inside the human body, particularly in the respiratory system. While most people can stand limited exposure, symptoms like mouth and throat dryness, coughing, headache, eye irritation and chest restriction may occur in some individuals at the concentrations produced by residential ozone generators. Moreover, consumers generally do not want a “one size fits all” air cleaning device. Consumers prefer an air cleaning device that can be customized to meet their specific needs. Consequently, to overcome the limitations of air cleaning devices that are currently available on the market and to address a wide range of consumer needs. Therefore, what is needed is a way of providing an effective air purification device that includes an ozone reducing mechanism and a way re-configuring the device to meet a specific consumer's needs.